A thriller about people who manipulate murder into accidental death… Starring Kang Dong-won
Movie ‘The Designer’
(Seoul = Larose.VIP) Reporter Lee Young-jae = Every incident hides an inner story that is different from what is revealed on the surface, and someone’s conspiracy is sometimes involved.
Anyone trying to understand the full story of an incident must keep in mind the possibility that there is a conspiracy, but it is dangerous to fall into conspiracy theories.
When you start explaining all phenomena with conspiracy theories, which are just hypotheses, you become increasingly distant from rational judgment. Like the absurd story that all major events in human history are a conspiracy of a secret group that rules the world behind the scenes.
However, we live in an era where it is easier than ever to be swayed by conspiracy theories. Conspiracy theories easily gain power on social networking services (SNS), where the line between fact and lies is blurred and fake news is rampant.
Director Lee Yo-seop’s new film ‘The Designer’ is a thriller that depicts this landscape of our times in cool tones.
The main character, Yeong-il (played by Kang Dong-won), lives in a dark world of conspiracy. He specializes in killing people under contract and disguising them as accidents.
Young-il’s job is to design and execute plots to kill people and escape the law. He works as a team with three colleagues: Jackie (Lee Mi-sook), Wol-cheon (Lee Hyun-wook), and Jeom-man (Tang Jun-sang).
Youngil has one memory that remains a traumatic experience. This is the mysterious death of his former colleague Jjak-Nun (Lee Jong-Seok). Young-il is convinced that this incident is a conspiracy by the ‘Cleaners’, a secret organization much larger than his team.
The story picks up steam as Yeong-il receives a request to kill an influential figure and begins the task.
As unexpected events unfold one after another, Young-il feels that another conspiracy is targeting him. Young-seon (Jung Eun-chae), who contracted Young-il to commit murder, and insurance company employee Chi-hyeon (Lee Moo-saeng) gradually drag Young-il into the labyrinth.
Movie ‘The Designer’
Kang Dong-won realistically depicts on screen the scene of an expert who designs the perfect conspiracy, who is deeply immersed in the world of conspiracy and is ultimately unable to escape.
He presents a very different performance from the light and comical elements shown in ‘The Priests’ (2015), ‘The Prosecutor’s Side Story’ (2016), and ‘Dr. Cheon’s Exorcism Lab: Secrets of the Snowy Scenery’ (2023). Kang Dong-won in ‘The Designer’ has a cold and dark expression throughout, and his face dominates the atmosphere of the play.
This film, which reflects the times in which it has become difficult to distinguish between real and fake, leaves open the question of whether the conspiracy that dominates Yeongil’s mind is fact or fantasy.
The events in the play, in which extremely low-probability coincidences come together, sometimes feel somewhat contrived. However, this may also be an incident depicted in Youngil’s mind, so it is difficult to judge with certainty.
This is the second feature film directed by director Lee. His debut feature film, ‘Queen of Crime’ (2016), is a story about a high school exam student who gets hit with a water bill, and was praised for bringing thrills out of everyday subjects.
‘The Designer’ is a remake of the Hong Kong film ‘Accident’ (2009). The basic setting of the story of a person who disguises a murder case as a simple accidental death is the same, but by introducing a YouTuber who spreads conspiracy theories, it has been reborn as a story that reflects the current times.
Director Lee said at the preview on the 23rd, “The more we try to find out, the more we sometimes feel like we are falling into a quagmire. In modern society, many people feel helpless and angry because they cannot reach the truth.” He added, “The protagonist who searches for the truth “I wanted to express the confusion and chaos of,” he said.
Released on the 29th. 99 minutes. Suitable for ages 15 and up.
Movie ‘The Designer’
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